Pop song phone number goes up for auction [telecom]

I guess I am out of it. That number means nothing to me.

Prior to electronic switching many, of not most C.O.s reserved XXX-0000 for calling maintenance in the C.O. My local LEC, at least, dropped that scheme when cutting to electronic. At the time I was tight with a wheel and convinced him to give me one of the 0000 numbers. He warned me I would get a lot of trash calls. I said it would be a second number we would use for outgoing calls only. (never turned the ringer on for that line)

Then, in November, 2003, when wireless local number portability became effective I ported it to my wireless service. It took Cingular 3 months to get the porting done. At first they claimed their system wouldn't accept porting of a 0000 number. I persisted and they finally got it done.

I don't use my wireless phone much except when on business or personal trips. There was a pattern of voice mails, mostly from car dealers, asking different names to please call back about that car they want to buy. (No one listened to the name on my voice mail message).

Apparently, folks who like to leave bogus numbers like using 0000.

About a year ago I placed a laborious message on the voice mail stating several times who they had reached and if the call isn't for my wife or me (by name for the second time) they have reached the wrong number. That seems to have solved the problem. The few folks that call my cell and know the routine hit "#" to abort the message and get the tone. (I believe that can be done with most C.O.-based voice mail.)

I always thought that telephone numbers "belonged" to the phone company and subscribers had no right to them as intellectual property. Has this changed?

Unfortunately, no.

Voice mails and answering machines are not consistent. A key on one system that gives you the beep puts you in phone mail jail on another system.

For instance, with some people I call, hitting 1 ends the beep on CO voice mail. But not on others.

It gets tedious when one has to make many phone calls and listen to long drawn out answering announcements.

***** Moderator's Note *****

I wonder if cellular users are billed per-minute for calls that go to voice mail. If so, the complicated and lengthly announcements are there to pad the bills.

If you look at the eBay listing, you'll see he's not selling the phone number. He's selling a business that has that phone number. This distinction might be how he is getting around this issue and/or eBay's rules.

Also, the phone is a Vonage line, and he will be shipping the Vonage adaptor to the winner. Presumably, he'll be providing the user name and password too; however I don't know if Vonage allows the account holder's name and billing address to be easily changed. I suspect Vonage may be easier to deal with on this issue than an ILEC.

The bidding is currently up to $5,000 with 5 days to go. I don't see what all the fuss is about, but I still wish I had thought of this...

-Gary

One of the local ambulance chasers has a large billboard up along the interstate with a 0000 number.

Yes, if you call from your cellphone to listen to your messages; the minutes count against your allowance.

For callers to you, you do not pay. However, if someone is calling you for their own cellphone, the meter is running. Many cell phone voice mails have extra options in addition to the person's own announcement.

I like to keep my answering machine announcements as short as possible. These days everyone knows what to do.

I've also found people ignore the announcements. I say "you've reached [phone number] ", but I still get many messages, some urgent, intended for another person.

I wish people leaving messages would speak slower, give the number they want to be reached at, and when the best time is to call. I used to say this in my announcement but it was always ignored. I come home from work and have messages with inadequate information.

At least three law firms in Las Vegas have phone numbers ending in

0000. And several of the heavily-advertised law firms in Vegas have repeating numerals, such as 444-4444 and 333-7777.

I know of at least one car dealer in the LA area that has 0000

One five-second component of my own OGM has always been:

"No collect or 3rd party billings, please."

Perhaps that's because my first answering machine purchase was for the purpose of putting an end to multiple 3rd party billings "authorized" during moments when no one was actually at home to authorize them :-) . (That strategem worked, BTW.)

Cheers, -- tlvp

-- Avant de repondre, jeter la poubelle, SVP

It's the "#" key with AT&T wireline and wireless around here, so perhaps it's that way with AT&T everywhere. That is a whole lot of C.O.-based voice mail systems.

As to subscriber answering machines that is a different matter.

This stuff is the result of the demise of standards boards, etc.

Currently, my CLID box is displaying a "212-000-2943 - NAME NOT FOUND" call at

4:59 pm on 7/28/2009. A triple-zero *exchange*? Is that CLID spoofing at work?

Cheers, -- tlvp

Here's what the Local Calling Guide says about 212-000-XXXX

"Error: NXX must be between 200 and 999."

Thanks for the support, Sam, confirming *no* valid "triple-zero exchange". Ergo: spoofing?

Cheers, -- tlvp

Watching a show today on a Las Vegas local TV channel, I saw a new ad for a law firm. Its number was 400-0000. I didn't think an office code could end in 00.